Written Answers Monday 22 September 2008

Scottish Executive

Ambulance Service

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what efficiency targets the Scottish Ambulance Service is required to achieve; over what time period, and what level of cash savings will be generated.

Shona Robison: In line with other NHS boards, the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) has been set a 2% recurring efficiency savings target over the period 2008-09 to 2010-11. These savings will be retained in the SAS.

Environment

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is committed to reducing carbon emissions across government in Scotland and, if so, by what amount, also expressed as a percentage.

Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government is committed to reducing carbon emissions across government. In respect of the buildings on the core estate of the Scottish Government, the information requested is provided in Scottish Government Environmental Performance Annual Report for 2006-07 , copies of which are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 44178). The report can also be found at www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/12/06160436/3 .

  In Scottish Budget Spending Review 2007, we made a commitment to develop a carbon assessment tool that can be applied across Government spending. Work on this initiative is progressing.

Fair Trade

Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it plans to promote fair trade in schools.

Maureen Watt: The Scottish Government’s Curriculum for Excellence focuses on citizenship and values which supports and encourages teaching about international education and international development. Fair trade falls within this by teaching the benefits of helping producers of goods in developing countries.

  The responsibility for the management and delivery of the Scottish curriculum including learning and teaching about international development education lies with education authorities. The concordat with COSLA, however includes, as a national outcome, the four aspirations of Curriculum for Excellence: that our young people are successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors and responsible citizens. The aim of the Curriculum for Excellence is to prepare young people with a range of knowledge and skills with which to engage in today’s increasingly multicultural and globalised society, to ensure that young people develop respect for the environment, different cultures and traditions, attitudes and in so doing, become more tolerant and understanding individuals. Learning Teaching Scotland’s website provides information on fair trade and creative learning and teaching ideas for schools http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/citizenship/index.asp.

  The Scottish Government also provides core funding of £60,000 a year for three years to the Scottish Fair Trade Forum to raise awareness of fair trade across the country, including within local authorities and schools. In addition, my colleague, the Minister for Europe, External Affairs and Culture, visited a number of primary schools during Fairtrade Fortnight earlier this year to hear about their fair trade activities, to encourage them to keep up the good work and set an example for other schools to follow.

Health

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what detailed guidelines it has provided since May 2007 in order to achieve the objectives, stated in Better Health Better Care: Action Plan , of planning and commissioning the majority of health care services as an integral part of the community planning programme.

Nicola Sturgeon: Responsibility for the implementation of Community Planning sits with partnerships at community level.

  The Joint Improvement Team based in the Primary and Community Care Directorate of the Scottish Government supports joint working at a local level between NHS boards, local authorities and a range of other stakeholders. In July 2008 it published a National Outcomes Framework for Community Care which supports Partnerships in assessing the progress made in improving health, well-being, social inclusion, independence and responsibility. In June 2007, the Joint Improvement Team published "Capacity to Change – Commissioning Effective Services for Older People" a work book designed to assist local authority and health partners in capacity planning and inform local commissioning plans. A second work book, "Capacity to Change – Commissioning Service Changes for People with Learning Disabilities" was produced in May 2008.

  A range of practical material to assist health, housing and social care partnerships is available on the JIT website http://www.jitscotland.org.uk.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-15495 by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2008, whether it considers that this answer is consistent with the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing’s commitment to being open and transparent in sharing information with families affected by Clostridium difficile at the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Nicola Sturgeon: We adhere to the due processes for the release of information under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and the Scottish Government’s Six Principles are available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/FOI/6principles/Q/EditMode/on/ForceUpdate/on .

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-15577 by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 September 2008, how the £54 million over three years to tackle all healthcare associated infection (HAI) will be allocated, broken down by (a) NHS board and (b) initiative.

Nicola Sturgeon: The £54 million set aside for HAI over the next three years is not allocated in this way. Funding supports the work of the Scottish Government, NHS boards and stakeholders such as Health Protection Scotland (HPS), Health Facilities Scotland (HFS), NHS Education for Scotland (NES) and NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (NHS QIS). The funding allocated to stakeholders is for the benefit of all NHS health boards across Scotland in tackling key areas of HAI and introducing best practices and methods. This work is being led by the multi agency HAI Task Force.

  In addition, dedicated resources have been allocated to NHS boards for a range of initiatives including MRSA screening, implementation of care bundles and hand hygiene campaign and to support the employment of infection control managers, local hand hygiene co-ordinators and antimicrobial pharmacists. The initiatives are outlined in the three year HAI Delivery Plan introduced in April 2008. The delivery plan can be viewed on the Scottish Government website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/03/07110818/0.

  In response to the recent independent review of the Vale of Leven Hospital, the HAI Task Force is also taking charge of the work in the new HAI National Action Plan for all NHS boards (all areas to be completed by March 2009). The action plan can also be viewed on the Scottish Government website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Health/NHS-Scotland/19529/2005/actionplans/cdiff-general-actions.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing monitors progress in relation to the Healthcare Associated Infection Task Force delivery plan.

Nicola Sturgeon: Our key stakeholders meet every two months and provide regular progress reports on their sections the Healthcare Associated Infection Delivery Plan. The delivery plan can be viewed at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/03/07110818/0 .

  The HAI Task Force meets on a quarterly basis and provides updates on the progression of the HAI three year delivery plan.

  I meet with officials on a regular basis to discuss all aspects of the HAI Delivery Plan.

Housing

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many approvals for new affordable houses under the Affordable Housing Investment Programme were announced by the previous administration in 2007 for the year 2007-08; how many houses were constructed under this programme in 2007-08, and how many houses it expects to be constructed under this programme in 2008-09.

The Executive has supplied the following corrected answer:

Stewart Maxwell: The number of approvals of new and refurbished affordable houses announced by the previous administration in 2007 for the year 2007-08 was 8,000 and 5,670 completions were achieved. During 2008-09 it is expected that 6,070 units will be approved and 7,000 units will be completed.

Justice

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will start collecting data for reoffending rates in respect of individual prisons.

Kenny MacAskill: The source of Scottish Government reconviction rate statistics is the Scottish Offenders Index (SOI), a database of convictions in Scottish courts. The SOI is based on extracts from the Criminal History System (CHS) held at the Scottish Police Service Authority (SPSA). Details of which prison an offender is sent to, having been sentenced to a custodial sentence, is not recorded on the SOI.

  Reconviction rates by individual prison would not necessarily be meaningful, as prisoners can be moved mid-sentence and therefore serve their sentence in more than one prison. In addition, prisoners can be transferred to another prison prior to liberation.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 102(5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 102 (5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of selling alcohol to a child or young person under section 102 (1) of the act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 103(2) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 103 (2) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of allowing the sale of alcohol to a child or young person under section 103 (1) of the act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 105(7) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 105(7) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of purchasing alcohol for a child or young person under section 105(4) of the act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

  However, section 105(1) came into force on 1 June 2006. Section 105 (1) makes it an offence for a child or young person to buy or attempt to buy alcohol. To date no charges have been reported to the Procurators Fiscal at Edinburgh and Linlithgow under that section.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 106(5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 106 (5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of knowingly allowing a child or young person to consume alcohol under Section 106 (2) of the Act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 107(4) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 107 (4) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of allowing the unsupervised sale of alcohol by a child or young person under section 107 (1) of the act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 108(9) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 108 (9) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of allowing the delivery of alcohol by or to a child or young person under sections 108 (2) and (3) of the act. Those sections do not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 109(4) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 109 (4) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of sending a child or young person to obtain alcohol under section 109 (1) of the act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 111(4) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 111 (4) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offences of being in or entering premises in which alcohol is sold while drunk under sections 111 (1) and (2) of the act. Those sections do not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 112(3) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 112 (3) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offences of obtaining alcohol by or for a drunk person under sections 112 (1) and (2) of the act. Those sections do not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 113(2) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 113(2) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of selling alcohol to a person who is drunk under section 113(1) of the act. That section does not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under sections 115(4) and (5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Sections 115 (4) and (5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provide for the penalties which apply to the offences of disorderly conduct and allowing disorderly conduct under sections 115 (1) and (2) of the act. Those sections do not come into force until 1 September 2009.

Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) reports have been sent to the Procurator Fiscal and (b) convictions have been obtained under section 116(5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 in (i) Edinburgh, (ii) West Lothian and (iii) Midlothian in each of the last two years.

Frank Mulholland QC: Section 116 (5) of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 provides for the penalties which apply to the offence of refusing to leave premises under sections 116 (1) and (2) of the act. Those sections do not come into force until 1 September 2009.

NHS Funding

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what annual funding will be available to each NHS board in areas where there are one or more prisons, or legalised police cells, on the assumption that responsibility for non-specialist medical services will be transferred from the Scottish Prison Service.

Shona Robison: The funding arrangements for NHS boards regarding the proposed transfer of primary health care services from Scottish Prison Services (SPS) to the NHS is still to be determined.

  In recognition of the significant scope of the work involved in the transfer of these services, a National Programme Board for Prisoners’ Healthcare is currently being set up. A key focus of the National Programme Board will be to oversee preparatory work in the area of finance and funding.

  Current estimates are that this work and the necessary legislation will take approximately three years prior to any transfer of services taking place.

NHS Funding

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding has been made available to each NHS board in areas where there are one or more prisons, or legalised police cells, to fund specialist medical services provided by that board both as outreach and on the board’s premises in (a) 2006-07, (b) 2007-08 and (c) 2008-09.

Shona Robison: No specific funding is provided to NHS boards for specialist medical services for prisoners. All NHS boards receive an annual allocation of funds. It is for each NHS board to decide how best to utilise these funds to meet the health care needs of its resident population, including those in prison, taking account of national and local priorities.

National Conversation

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many meetings on Choosing Scotland’s Future: A National Conversation have been held since January 2008.

Nicola Sturgeon: The publication of Choosing Scotland’s future has successfully stimulated a wide ranging debate about Scotland’s constitutional future involving academics, voluntary organisations, faith groups, local government, trade unions, business, media and the public. As part of this National Conversation, 20 events involving or organised by the government, took place between January and September 2008. Information about these events is available on the National Conversation website.

National Conversation

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive who was invited to the meetings on Choosing Scotland’s Future: A National Conversation held since January 2008 and how this invitation list was decided on.

Nicola Sturgeon: Participants in National Conversation events organised by the Scottish Government since January 2008 have been drawn from the voluntary sector, faith groups, business, local government, charities, the education sector and other representatives of civic Scotland. Participants in National Conversation events held as part of the Cabinet’s summer programme also included members of the public who responded to invitations published in local media. Officials in the National Conversation team were responsible for compiling invitation lists.

National Conversation

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people attended each of the meetings on Choosing Scotland’s Future: A National Conversation held since January 2008 and how many (a) special advisers and (b) civil servants attended.

Nicola Sturgeon: The National Conversation has stimulated debate about Scotland’s constitutional future across the country. The Scottish Government does not hold information about the numbers attending events organised by others such as the universities or the media.

  Where information is held about the numbers attending events directly organised by or involving the Scottish Government, it is shown in the following table. The number of civil servants and special advisers attending each event varied but was the minimum considered necessary to provide effective support for ministers.

  

 Date
 Event
 Numbers


 4 February 
 First Minister launches Scotland in the World Forum at Aberdeen University
 100 


 13 February 
 First Minister National Conversation speech at Trinity College, Dublin 
 100


 12 March 
 SCVO National Conversation event in Edinburgh
 45


 26 March 
 First Minister launches National Conversation Civic engagement programme at Edinburgh University
 110


 1 April 
 First Minister National Conversation speech Scotland Week University of Virginia address
 200


 23 April 
 First Minister leads Scotland in Europe seminar
 60


 3 May 
 Bruce Crawford Church Without Walls event
 205


 19 June 
 Church leaders event in Parliament 
 19


 20 June 
 Bruce Crawford addresses SCVO event at SECC 
 45


 29 July 
 First Minister and Cabinet event in Dumfries 
 120


 1 August 
 Young Scot event in East Ayrshire 
 100


 5 August 
 First Minister and Cabinet event in Inverness 
 100


 7 August
 Young Scot event in Stranraer
 165


 19 August 
 First Minister and Cabinet event in Pitlochry 
 104


 23 August 
 Young Scot event in Irvine 
 330


 26 August 
 First Minister and Cabinet event in Skye 
 105


 30 August 
 Young Scot event in Inverurie 
 375


 8 Sept 
 SCVO event in Uist 
 20

National Conversation

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive which ministers took part in the meetings on Choosing Scotland’s Future: A National Conversation held since January 2008.

Nicola Sturgeon: All Scottish Government ministers have taken part in National Conversation activity since January 2008.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when farmers can expect to receive guidance on the new nitrate vulnerable zone regulations before they come into force in January 2009.

Richard Lochhead: In the first half of December. NFU Scotland and the Scottish Agricultural College have agreed to conduct test runs with selected farmers before the revised guidance is published. It is planned that the guidance will be put on the Scottish Government website in early November and that copies of the guidance will be sent to all farmers in the nitrate vulnerable zones in early December. In addition, the Scottish Agricultural College will conduct a number of workshops to explain the new rules and procedures.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to minimise any cost and inconvenience to farmers affected by the new nitrate vulnerable zone regulations.

Richard Lochhead: Several actions are being taken to assist farmers who may be affected by the revised Nitrate Vulnerable Zone Action Programme. In particular, they may be eligible for funding from the Scotland Rural Development Programme towards the costs of manure and slurry storage. We will be issuing guidance on the new requirements, and the Scottish Agricultural College is preparing a series of workshops. We have established the Nitrates Directive Stakeholder Group to identify ways in which farmers can most effectively make the transition from the current to the new action programme requirements. This will reduce the risk of fertiliser pollution in Scotland, and help farmers get more value from both organic and inorganic fertilisers.

Prescriptions

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how and when it will eliminate paper prescriptions following universal introduction of Electronic Transfer of Prescriptions.

Shona Robison: There are no current plans to eliminate paper prescriptions. The paper prescription services a number of purposes in addition to acting as an order for medicines, and it is the paper prescription that triggers the electronic transmission of the prescription information to the pharmacy. Only when these other functions are available through an electronic medium could paper prescriptions be eliminated.

Prescriptions

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what savings it expects to make in replacing paper prescriptions by Electronic Transfer of Prescriptions and where any such savings will be made.

Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-16220 on 22 September 2008 which explains, paper cannot be eliminated completely from the prescriptions process in Scotland at this stage. While the electronic transmission of prescriptions brings a range of benefits we do not expect, overall, to see a substantial financial saving.

  All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Prescriptions

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will reach a decision on the Minor Ailments Service in advance of the abolition of prescription charges.

Shona Robison: The abolition of prescription charges will not substantively affect the Minor Ailment Service (MAS). In April 2011 when the charge is reduced to zero we intend to redefine the eligibility criteria for MAS to ensure that the patient groups that currently qualify i.e. children, the elderly and those currently exempt on low income grounds continue to do so.

Prescriptions

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much income will be lost to each NHS board from abolition of prescription and appliance charges.

Shona Robison: The estimated cost of the phased abolition of prescription charges over the next three years is £17 million, £24 million and £32 million, respectively. An allocation of £17 million, based on income in 2007-08, has been made to boards for 2008-09 and is split as follows:

  

 NHS Board
£000


 NHS Ayrshire and Arran
 1,207


 NHS Borders
 396


 NHS Dumfries and Galloway
 536


 NHS Fife
 1,212


 NHS Forth Valley
 1,044


 NHS Grampian
 1,999


 NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde
 3,459


 NHS Highland
 1,143


 NHS Lanarkshire
 1,894


 NHS Lothian
 2,543


 NHS Orkney
 70


 NHS Shetland
 98


 NHS Tayside
 1,298


 NHS Western Isles
 102



  The precise effect on each NHS board’s annual income will be monitored during the course of each financial year and will inform future allocations to boards.

Prescriptions

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what additional costs are predicted on the basis of an increase in demand for prescriptions.

Shona Robison: The estimated cost of the phased abolition of prescription charges over the next three years is £17 million, £24 million and £32 million, respectively, which allows for an expected increase in demand for prescriptions consistent with our policy intentions. Additional headroom over and above these estimates has been included in the Scottish budget for the current spending review period and arrangements are in place to monitor a range of factors including the volume of prescriptions dispensed.

Prison Service

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is taking, or proposes to take, any additional step in the light of the Blakey report, Disrupting the Supply of Illicit Drugs into Prisons , published by the Ministry of Justice on 7 July 2008.

Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  On publication of the report we cross checked our approach against that contained within the Blakey report. We are pleased to say that the key recommendations contained within the report are generally in line with our current approach in tackling the threat posed by the introduction of illegal drugs into prisons. I will arrange for more details to be forwarded by letter.

Public Private Partnerships

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive why a revenue support grant input form for Scottish Government funding support for schools PPP projects is still on its website.

Fiona Hyslop: Remaining authorities with such projects which have yet to reach financial close will require to use this form.

Sport

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list for each sport that was competed at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games (a) whether it has a separate Scottish governing body, (b) how much its governing bodies received from the Scottish Government or its agencies in 2007-08 and (c) how much its governing bodies are budgeted to receive in each year from 2008-09 to 2011-12.

Stewart Maxwell: The following table shows those sports in which Team GB competed at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

  It should be noted that not all sports governing bodies share the same financial year end. This means that sportscotland’s investment process is at different stages of the planning and commitment process. Whilst investment has been agreed for some sports, final investment figures for 2008-09 and beyond are not yet available. Sportscotland also invests in developing athletes through the Scottish Institute of Sport, the high performance delivery arm of sportscotland, and the network of Area Institutes.

  

 Sports Team GB competed in at 2008 Olympic Games
 Recognised Scottish Governing Body
2007-08
Investment £


 Aquatics inc Swimming
 Y
 819,500


 Archery
 Y
 20,517


 Athletics
 Y
 658,335


 Badminton
 Y
 373,999


 Boxing*
 Y
 4,722


 Canoe/Kayak
 Y
 317,438


 Cycling
 Y
 422,399


 Equestrian
 Y
 209,629


 Fencing
 Y
 52,760


 Gymnastics
 Y
 371,750


 Hockey
 Y
 665,197


 Judo
 Y
 393,158


 Modern pentathlon
 Y
 5,705


 Rowing
 Y
 78,963


 Sailing
 Y
 342,370


 Shooting
 Y
 140,000


 Taekwondo**
 N
 5,000


 Tennis
 Y
 317,891


 Triathlon
 Y
 153,570


 Weightlifting***
 Y
 445



  Notes:

  *Investment of £205,000 to the Scottish governing body in 2007-08 was committed in 2006-07.

  **Investment went to GB governing body for one Scottish individual.

  ***This investment was to help the Scottish governing body develop its performance plan. The investment is likely to increase substantially in 2008-09 against the plan and potentially a national coach.